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Religulous

Religulous (2008)

tomatometer

70

Average Rating: 6.3/10
Reviews Counted: 152
Fresh: 106 | Rotten: 46

Religulous is funny and offensive in equal measure, and aims less to change hearts and minds than to inspire conversation.

65

Average Rating: 6/10
Critic Reviews: 34
Fresh: 22 | Rotten: 12

Religulous is funny and offensive in equal measure, and aims less to change hearts and minds than to inspire conversation.

audience

78

liked it
Average Rating: 3.8/5
User Ratings: 36,282

My Rating

Movie Info

Borat director Larry Charles follows host Bill Maher as he travels the continents interviewing various subjects about God and religion. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

R, 1 hr. 41 min.

Documentary, Faith & Spirituality, Comedy

Feb 17, 2009

$13.0M

Lionsgate Films

All Critics (154) | Top Critics (34) | Fresh (110) | Rotten (46) | DVD (6)

Maher is essentially and professionally a comic, and the measure of this movie is not just the thoughts it provokes but the laughs it generates.

November 10, 2008 Full Review Source: Film.com | Comment
Film.com
Top Critic IconTop Critic

I think this is an important movie, challenging, many beliefs that many of us seem unwilling to talk about. Mainly, though, you'll laugh...a lot.

November 10, 2008 Full Review Source: At the Movies | Comment
At the Movies
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Religulous has an unholy fervor that should start many bonfires.

October 18, 2008 Full Review Source: New York Magazine | Comment
New York Magazine
Top Critic IconTop Critic

About half of the movie works in its snide, hit-and-run way. The other half throws more and more darts at the same balloon, long after it pops.

October 18, 2008 Full Review Source: Chicago Tribune | Comments (9)
Chicago Tribune
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Maher sets out not after answers but cheap laughs that preach, so to speak, to the converted.

October 18, 2008 Full Review Source: Los Angeles Times | Comment
Los Angeles Times
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Was Maher afraid he might muddy his clownish jape if he actually brought into the mix a learned theologian?

October 6, 2008 Full Review Source: Christian Science Monitor | Comments (11)
Christian Science Monitor
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Bill Maher admittedly dresses a one-sided anti-religion diatribe in documentary linens and the hypocrites he finds make great punchlines. But he also addresses the historically proven truth of faith perverted for power and the danger posed to us all.

September 17, 2010 Full Review Source: Suite101.com | Comment
Suite101.com

Rather disconcertingly, the film builds towards a vision of the apocalypse, the destructive fate that religious conflicts have in store for us -- a version of the future any hellfire preacher would be proud of.

December 9, 2009 Full Review Source: The Age (Australia) | Comment
The Age (Australia)

Borat/Bruno meets Michael Moore in this funny and thought provoking attack on religion.

December 9, 2009 Full Review Source: FILMINK (Australia) | Comment
FILMINK (Australia)

So if you are not already on-side with [Maher's] particular leanings, the pickings in Religulous are very slim indeed.

December 9, 2009 Full Review Source: Herald Sun (Australia) | Comments (6)
Herald Sun (Australia)

The Passion of the Maher

September 1, 2009 Full Review Source: minnpost.com | Comment
minnpost.com

Instead of confronting real problems radiating from the world's major religions Mr. Maher and Mr. Charles opt for Borat redux, making fun of silly little yokels.

August 30, 2009 Full Review Source: Washington Times | Comment (1)

Ever the clever quipper, Bill Maher tackles religious dogma and ritual%u2013and Bibles tales%u2013in this documentary of irreverence. The film is witty and pointedly critical%u2013but it's no revelation.

June 27, 2009 Full Review Source: About.com | Comment
About.com

Ultimately, the movie is an impotent howl into the wind.

June 7, 2009 Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | Comment
eFilmCritic.com

Click for full review

May 10, 2009 Full Review Source: Movies for the Masses | Comment (1)
Movies for the Masses

Wants to be a wakeup call in a room where the people are willing to sleep just a little too deeply.

April 17, 2009 Full Review Source: Window to the Movies | Comment
Window to the Movies

I'm all for a documentary about the mass hysteria of our warring creeds, but stand-up satirist Bill Maher turns out to be the wrong man to make it.

April 9, 2009 Full Review Source: Daily Telegraph | Comment
Daily Telegraph

Maher has gone for easy targets. He comes up with the odd funny gag, but you get the feeling that he is as dogmatic about his doubt as the believers are about their faith.

April 9, 2009 Full Review Source: Times [UK] | Comments (9)
Times [UK]

Often funny, frequently unfair, mostly simplistic, at times offensively unethical and ultimately limited.

April 9, 2009 Full Review Source: Observer [UK] | Comments (5)
Observer [UK]

It was much more thought-provoking than I was expecting, but his blatant bias made me feel that he was no less a fundamentalist than the religious people he was criticising.

April 3, 2009 Full Review Source: Little White Lies | Comment
Little White Lies

Over-extended but nonetheless thought provoking and humorous documentary.

April 3, 2009 Full Review Source: Time Out | Comment

Fortunately for filmgoers, the sight of Bill Maher laying the smacketh down on God is, to quote Homer Simpson, truly "sacrilicious".

April 3, 2009 Full Review Source: Film4 | Comment
More Critic Reviews

Audience Reviews for Religulous

Comedian Bill Maher takes a close look at religion in this very funny, but thought provoking documentary. Religion is a subject that is very controversial, and eye opening. I am a big fan of Bill Maher, thus I had to check out this film. The result is a flawed, but nonetheless entertaining documentary. The film uses

May 4, 2012
TheDudeLebowski65
Jeff "The Dude" Lebowski

Super Reviewer

Comedian Bill Maher takes his smirking cynicism of religious dogma on the road and talks to various crackpots in this documentary exploring belief. Maher is taking up the standard of the likes of Bill Hicks as he mocks his way through the various modern faiths both great and small. Religulous is clearly meant more as

November 15, 2008
garyX
xGary Xx

Super Reviewer

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Foreign Titles

  • Religolo (FR)
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